by Paula Cox
“Oh my God.” Janelle peered her head through the cracked door. “Well, I see you guys have…” Janelle trailed off when her eyes found Cliff.
He smirked. “Made up?”
Janelle blinked, refocusing. “What?”
“You see we’ve made up?”
“Yeah. That too.” She turned to Liana. “Are we doing this thing? Are we going to make some money and entertain the shit out of some people?”
Liana laughed, still pulling on her shirt over her bra. “Let’s make some money and entertain the shit out of some people,” she said. “But first, I think we need to deal with Colin. The last thing we want is for him to catch wind of our new passion project and send it up in flames.”
“That’s a solid point,” Janelle agreed. “What’s our plan for that?”
“Don’t have one.” Cliff moved forward on the bed.
Janelle, sensing he was getting up, immediately ducked back into the hallway. “I’ll just wait in the living room for you two, how about that?”
Cliff laughed and stood up, casually collecting his clothes.
They joined Janelle in the living room a few minutes later, now fully dressed. Cliff’s shirt was missing a few buttons, so he left it open. Janelle seemed like she was trying very hard not to look.
Cliff and Liana settled down on the couch next to each other. She leaned into him, and he wrapped a protective arm around her. She smelled of feminine musk and sweat, and he resisted the urge to bury his nose in her hair.
“So what should we do about Colin?” Janelle asked, getting straight to business. Cliff could see just from her face that she was laser focused. If he had known that all it would take to apprehend Colin was to tell Janelle that he was the step in between them and their club, Cliff would have posed it to her in that way before.
“This affects more than us,” Liana said. “I’d like to call everyone else in on this and see if they want to help.”
“We can do this without putting anyone else at risk,” Cliff said. “I already hate how much this has affected other people when it’s my mess to clean up. “
“It’s not your mess.” Liana poked him in the stomach. “You didn’t do anything to deserve this. And if I were Ellis, or Amos, or Julian, I would want to have a hand in bringing Colin down. If only so I could see it happen with my own eyes.”
Cliff gazed down at her, smiling. She was so much stronger and fiercer than he’d given her credit for when they first met. He was glad. Even though she defied and vexed him, he wouldn’t have her act any other way. She was the perfect match for him.
“Okay,” he said. “We’ll call the others. If nothing else, we can have a roundtable about how we’re going to beat him.”
“I’ve got a few ideas,” Janelle said. “Most of them involve a bottle of his own medicine, if you know what I mean.” She winked dramatically.
Liana laughed. “We couldn’t not know what you mean.”
Cliff certainly wasn’t opposed to ending Colin in a more permanent way, but he wanted to avoid it if possible. Not because he wanted Colin alive. No, he just didn’t want to go down that path. Not with Liana. She was his fresh start. If he could avoid sullying that fresh start with a murder right off the bat, it would be ideal.
“Let’s start with some logistics,” Liana said. “Where is safe to hold such a meeting?” She turned to Cliff. “Your place got trashed.” Gesturing to Janelle, she added, “Your place just isn’t secure enough. Sorry.”
Janelle shrugged. “No, I get it. I’m also not sure I want to be at this thing in the first place.”
“What?” Liana looked shocked.
“I think that’s a good idea,” Cliff interjected. He squeezed Liana on the shoulder. “If Janelle doesn’t feel safe attending, she doesn’t need to be there. She’ll be more help outside of the meeting.”
“I didn’t say I wanted to help,” Janelle said. “Not that I don’t want to take this guy down; I just don’t have the kind of skills to do so. I think you guys would be better without me.”
Cliff smiled warmly at her. “Just you knowing about the meeting will be helpful,” he said. “That way if we don’t check in with you, you can let someone in my family know.”
“Right.”
Janelle narrowed her eyes a little, assessing Cliff. He knew what was coming next.
“So who is your family exactly, Cliff?” she asked.
Beside him, Liana stiffened. Cliff patted her arm to signal that it was okay.
“I’m sure you’ve already figured it out already,” Cliff said. “You’re a smart girl.”
Janelle leaned back in her chair and grinned. “I’ve got the general idea, but not the details. It’s a powerful family, I’ve gathered that much. But which one?”
“The Corellis,” Cliff replied. “I’m the adopted son of Muncio Corelli.”
Janelle’s mouth dropped open, eyebrows shooting the opposite way. That was about the reaction he normally got from anyone who knew anything about New York crime families.
“I’m not sure I’m okay with you dating my friend,” Janelle said after a moment. “You’re a nice enough guy, but… the Corellis… That’s some serious shit.”
Liana stirred again, sitting forward. “I’m not sure that’s any of your business,” she snapped.
“Relax, Liana,” Cliff murmured. He took her chin in his hand and smiled down at her. “Janelle is right to be concerned. If she weren’t, I would be wondering what she hoped to gain out of this.” He glanced over at Janelle, whose narrowed eyes and tight jaw spoke of alarm. “Don’t tell my father this. I’m planning on getting out of the business as soon as this is over.”
“Why would you do that?” Janelle asked warily. “It’s a profitable business. And I’m sure your adopted father might have some qualms.”
“Why do you think?” Cliff kissed the top of Lion's head. “I’ve already made my profit. I’m ready to start living my life. I can’t do that on a mobster’s payroll.”
Liana glanced up at him, smiling through her lashes. He leaned down and pecked her cherry-red lips. A tidal wave of warmth and happiness crashed over Cliff. He had never had that feeling before with anyone else.
Even himself.
“Okay,” Janelle said, clearing her throat.
Cliff’s gaze swung back over to her. “Okay?”
“Okay. I’ll let you date my friend.”
She would let him? Cliff had half a mind to tell her that nobody let him do anything. If he wanted to do it, he did it. End of story.
But Cliff had started enough fights recently. All he had room left to do was end them—either through reconciliation or something a little more permanent.
“I’m glad we’ve got you on board,” Cliff said. “Now we still need to solve the problem Liana brought up so astutely.”
Liana groaned. “There are so many steps between here and getting rid of Colin.” She leaned her head on his shoulder. “Don’t you find it all a bit discouraging?”
“Discouraging? No.” Cliff stroked an errant curl by her face. “The way I look at it, there were thousands upon thousands of steps between starting my life and meeting you.” He smiled. “And I would do them all over again if I could.”
Liana’s eyes widened, filling with light. Her cheeks flushed nearly as pink as her lips. Cliff leaned down and pressed a kiss to each of them.
“If I had known you were such a charmer, maybe I wouldn’t have been so hard on you when we first met,” Liana said, chuckling.
“If you hadn’t been so hard on me when we first met,” Cliff countered. “I might not have turned out to be such a charmer.”
Janelle cleared her throat, collapsing their bubble. Cliff raised an eyebrow and looked over at her.
“I just think we should be figuring out this meeting,” Janelle said. “No better time than the present and all that.”
Cliff elected not to mention how Janelle had, only hours before, been insisting they engage in exactly such behavior. She was
right. It was time for them to figure out their meeting place problem. Then they could move onto the greater problem at hand.
Their rat infestation.
“I think I have an idea,” Liana said. “For somewhere we could meet. It’s not very comfortable, but it’s secure.”
Cliff groaned. He knew exactly where she was talking about. It wasn’t comfortable, but it was secure. Liana was right. It would make the best meeting place.
The only problem? The last thing Cliff ever wanted to see again was that goddamn bunker.
“Tomorrow,” he said and smiled at Liana. “Today, you and I are going to make a plan. And after that, we’ll pretend we’re somewhere else, thousands of miles away.”
“When you’re pretending, try to remember that there’s someone else in this house that’s not thousands of miles away,” Janelle suggested.
Liana laughed. Cliff shot Janelle a flat look. Janelle shrugged. The normalcy of the situation was addictive. Cliff couldn't wait for it to become permanent.
And that gave him an idea.
Chapter 31
Liana resisted the urge to bounce from foot to foot with nervous energy. She was both excited and anxious to present her and Cliff’s plan to the assembled group. Was it crazy? Maybe. Would it work? Maybe.
Would it working make her the happiest person on the earth? Definitely.
Ellis arrived first. His unshaven face drooped with age in a way Liana had never seen before. He looked like a different man. A beaten man. She smiled as she approached him from where she’d been sitting on the bed in the corner of the bunker.
“Hey,” Liana greeted. “It’s good to see you. I’m sorry about what happened.”
Cliff was right behind her, engaging the downtrodden detective in a firm handshake.
“Let’s just catch this guy,” Ellis grumbled. “Then I can get you two and the trouble you bring out of my life.”
Liana took a step back as he brushed past her, heading straight for the beverages they’d assembled on the counter in the kitchen. She held her breath as he did. Ellis stunk.
“None of these are alcoholic,” Ellis complained.
Cliff’s jaw tightened. “Because this isn't a party,” he said.
Ellis merely snorted and poured himself a cup of juice, which he then hovered in front of in such a manner as to lead Liana to believe that he was adding something to it he shouldn’t have. She chose to ignore it, focusing instead on a much more jubilant looking face that had just arrived.
“Julian,” she said. “How are you?”
The older man, who never seemed to let anything get under his skin, chuckled warmly. “Same old, same old,” he replied. “A weed never dies.”
While this sentiment was slightly more uplifting than Ellis’, Liana was beginning to wonder if any of the people in this room would be able to mentally withstand further attacks from Colin.
A knife of guilt slipped just under Liana’s ribs. Though she had known that Colin was affecting other people in her and Cliff’s lives, she hadn’t realized the extent. It was a sobering realization. So much depended on Liana and Cliff’s ability to pull this off. For them. For Julian. For Amos. For Janelle. And for poor, broken Ellis. She wasn’t sure if he would recover from his particular plight, but she vowed to do everything and everything she could to help him do so.
Amos came in last, sending a furtive glance behind him to make sure he wasn’t followed. “Nice place you got here,” he commented.
Liana chuckled. “There are drinks over there. Thank you for coming.”
From the corner, where Ellis had sequestered himself, Liana heard a discouraging snort. She chose to ignore it. One look at Cliff—all tension and thinly veiled anger—told her he had made the same decision.
“Everyone’s here,” Liana announced.
“What about that friend of yours? The Janelle chick? Ain’t she coming?” Ellis asked. “Or is she dead?”
A hush descended over the room. Cliff took a menacing step toward Ellis, but Liana stopped him with a hand on his chest. She donned a tight smile.
“No she isn’t coming,” she replied. “And no, she isn’t dead. She’s waiting to hear from us. If she doesn’t, she’s sending in backup.”
Ellis met her smile with a bitter one of his own. “Excuse me for not coming to that conclusion on my own,” he said. “I just didn’t think either of you would take any sort of precautionary measures to ensure our safety.” He flared his nostrils. “It doesn’t seem to be your style.”
Cliff surged forward before Liana could stop him.
“We’ve all had to make sacrifices,” Cliff said, voice as cold and sharp as a frozen blade. “I know that you didn’t sign up to make those sacrifices, but neither did I.” He swept his gaze to include Amos and Julian. “I underestimated Colin. I’ll be the first to say it. But assigning blame instead of working together to fix the problem only helps one person.” After a pregnant pause, he added, “Colin.”
Ellis’ eyes dropped to the cup in his hand. Reluctantly, he reached over to set it down on the counter, looking chastened. Liana was unable to find triumph in the moment. The man’s life had been ruined, and there was only one way to get it back on track.
“Everyone, please take a seat,” Liana said. “Cliff and I have developed a plan that we think gives us our best chance of both ferreting Colin out and taking him down.”
“We’re listening,” said Amos, leaning casually against the back wall. “And for the record, I underestimated him too. He’s got tech skills that I can’t even fathom. He’s an expert.”
Liana smiled. “Thanks, Amos.”
“Hell, if we’re throwing in the underestimating towel,” Julian interjected. “I had no idea that the little asshole would be so vindictive.” He scowled. “I worked decades for men who would sooner kill than expose weakness. I should have been able to spot the signs.”
Liana glanced over at Ellis, who merely gave her an acknowledging nod. It was as much as she could hope to receive from him, and she’d take it.
“We know more about Colin now, though,” Cliff said. “And he made the same mistake. He underestimated us.”
Liana nodded. “Colin showed his cards too early. Now we know what it is that makes him tick, and we can use that against him.” She took a deep breath, trying to hold back the smile that threatened to spill out across her face. “So Cliff and I have decided to get married.”
Eyebrows rose all across the room. Julian was the first to speak.
“Either you two have gone off the deep end and are tying the knot because life is short and you’re in love, or you’ve got off another deep end and are going to use this marriage to draw out a psychopath.”
Cliff’s hand slipped around Liana’s and squeezed. “A bit of both,” Cliff said.
Liana’s heart fluttered. Maybe it was a crazy plan, but it didn’t feel crazy to her.
“So when Colin comes to your wedding, guns loaded, and releases several rounds into your wedding party,” Ellis drawled, “are you going to just write that off as collateral damage?”
“We’re not having a wedding party,” Liana shot back.
“Yet,” Cliff added.
Liana shot a sideways smile at him. Now wasn’t the time, but she wanted to kiss him.
“We’re just going to go to city hall. But what matters is that it will be public,” Liana said. “We won’t make any efforts to hide the marriage.”
“And what makes you think this will work?” Amos asked. “He must be a pretty smart guy. He’s able to hide his tracks online like I’ve never seen before. You don’t think he’ll catch on if you two have a runaway wedding?”
“No,” Cliff said. “He is smart, but his jealousy consumes him. It’s his greatest strength and his greatest weakness.”
Liana looked up at Cliff, studying the broad stroke of his jaw and his elegant poise. Her husband. He was going to be her husband! She couldn’t wait. Though she understood it achieved a purpose, they had no plan
s to annul the marriage afterward. Not any that they had discussed at least. But Liana was sure in her relationship. She was sure in Cliff. And if all went well, she was sure that she had an amazing life just waiting around the corner for her.
“You two are cute,” Julian observed.
Startled, Liana tore her gaze away from Cliff. Julian wore a knowing smile. She didn’t know much about the former gangster, but she liked him. He gave her hope. Hope that Cliff would be able to make it out of the mob. Hope that he wasn’t too far gone to live a life of peace.